Busch Gardens Virginia Getting 1st Wooden Coaster!

Believe it or not, Busch Gardens Williamsburg is about to get it’s first wooden coaster! The nearly 41 year old company announced recently that it’s coaster collection will expand to eight when the new attraction opens in Spring of 2017. The entertainment destination is also touting this ride as the first “crowdsourced” ride on the planet. The park is fully aware that they are making the announcement quite early versus the traditional 9 months or so-in-advance timeframe that parks usually give. However, fans should love this because the project will require their input as they will vote to “Decide The Ride” on such elements as the attraction details, theme elements, marketing initiatives and even the name of the ride. At least we know some things about the currently nameless coaster via the press release that was sent out to media outlets such as yours truly (teethy-smily face emoji). The minimum height requirement for riders is 46 inches tall; this is in response to guest’s request to have an attraction that adults can ride with their children.

This will be a great ride for families, but make no mistake: this will not be a kiddie ride. –Larry Giles, VP of Engineering

The new ride will be located in the New France village section of the park and will have a nice 74 foot drop and nine airtime hills, which is the same as Apollo’s Chariot. The coaster will indeed be a wooden structure but will have steel supports. The coaster boasts of 2,100 feet of track that’ll roll guests through the topography of Busch Gardens, then underground via a tunnel and up-close and personal with the Le Scoot log flume ride and the Busch Gardens Railway. A great upside is the existing nearby rides won’t need to close during construction. The theme is that of a fanciful legend that is connected with the exploring of North America by Vikings. The attraction will invite guests to get in on the battle between the invading Vikings and residents of New France trappers’ village, as they are protecting their turf. Most certainly, the park is looking to rev-up high interest in their new attraction to be a follow-up to the exciting Tempesto, which opened to much excitement and intrigue last year.

The park says the ride being announced so early before it’s projected opening date is a commitment to it’s members and fans to involve them like never before. Through social media and the Busch Gardens website, fans can take a survey to “Decide The Ride”. Guests can also participate in pre-ride audio and video segments as some of the other ways to contribute to the ride’s detail concepts. The options for the wooden coaster’s name are Viking Raider, Battle Klash and InvadR; the polls are open through April 1st and coaster freaks are only allowed to vote once a day. Busch Gardens will brand the attraction with the name that gets the most votes. The park will share construction progress, news and notes on a special section of their website; you can check it out via this link.

So, what do you think about this approach to marketing the new coaster at Busch Gardens? Will you be joining in the fun of being apart of helping to name the ride and decide it’s themes? Nonetheless, it’s a great way to capture the attention of the park and have as many passionate Busch Gardens Williamsburg fans as possible involved with the project to have it be a memorable experience. This certainly brings the Fun Back! Tell us how you voted via the comments below and on our social media channels!

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